Despite the cheap gasoline prices and an overall shift towards crossovers and SUVs across the board, we can still see a growing preference for smaller sizes: the larger the mainstream SUV segment, the slower its growth rate in the first quarter of 2016. If sales of subcompact crossovers in the US boomed with an increase of 162,5% and sales of compact crossovers in the US outgrew the market with a plus of 4.9%, midsized SUVs added just 3.7% to their volume in the same period of last year. Total segment sales stood at 412,039 units. And while the two smaller segments both welcomed a new leader, the Ford Explorer still tops the charts for midsized SUVs in the US, thanks to sales up 8%, a similar growth rate as its nearest two competitors Jeep Grand Cherokee and Toyota Highlander. [Read more…]

US consumers bought 1.74 million Mid-sized SUVs in 2015, a 10% increase over 2014 and a growth rate twice of that of the industry’s 5%. Only 2 out of the 18 remaining players in this segment lose volume, while 4 score volume records for their nameplates. Unlike the compact crossover segment, Japanese brands don’t dominate this ranking, as the Ford Explorer remains the best seller of the segment thanks to an increase of 19% to almost a quarter of a million sales, the model’s best volume since 2004. In fact, each of the top-3 models has now scored six consecutive years of volume increases. The Jeep Grand Cherokee added 7% in 2015 for its highest volume since 2005 and the Toyota Highlander added 9% to score a volume record in its 15th year on the market. [Read more…]